Caprock Group LLC Grows Stock Holdings in H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB)

Caprock Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of H&R Block, Inc. (NYSE:HRB) by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,902 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 746 shares during the quarter. Caprock Group LLC’s holdings in H&R Block were worth $377,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in H&R Block in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Bogart Wealth LLC grew its holdings in H&R Block by 606.1% in the third quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in H&R Block during the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in H&R Block by 4,152.9% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 723 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 706 shares during the period. Finally, Quest Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of H&R Block by 2,756.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 714 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 689 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.14% of the company’s stock.

H&R Block Stock Performance

NYSE:HRB opened at $58.30 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $61.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $57.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.46. H&R Block, Inc. has a twelve month low of $42.28 and a twelve month high of $68.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.22, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.67.

H&R Block (NYSE:HRB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported ($1.17) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.13) by ($0.04). H&R Block had a negative return on equity of 212.45% and a net margin of 16.19%. The company had revenue of $193.81 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $188.78 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.05) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that H&R Block, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

H&R Block Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a $0.375 dividend. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. H&R Block’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.59%.

H&R Block announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, August 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 16.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HRB has been the topic of several research reports. StockNews.com lowered H&R Block from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on H&R Block from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of H&R Block in a research note on Friday, November 8th.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Kellie J. Logerwell sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.41, for a total value of $515,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,474 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,189,910.34. This represents a 30.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Jeffrey J. Jones II sold 9,722 shares of H&R Block stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.07, for a total value of $613,166.54. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 893,169 shares in the company, valued at $56,332,168.83. This represents a 1.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

H&R Block Profile

H&R Block, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides assisted income tax return preparation and do-it-yourself (DIY) tax return preparation services and products to the general public primarily in the United States, Canada, and Australia. It offers assisted income tax return preparation and related services through a system of retail offices operated directly by the company or its franchisees.